#attribute

"Don't tell me you're getting cold feet now!" Harper led you to the seats you two had been assigned in the stands. You knew that you couldn't control her, but this was getting out of hand.

Harper had the ability to steal anyone's size anytime she wanted. Of course, you, as a normal human wanted Harper to stay normal sized for the majority of the time. Once a month, whenever she wanted, she was entitled to stealing the size of 1 group of people temporarily. It was still a lot, but manageable.

Now, as she looked at the crowd of people, she eyed them like meals. This was WAY more people than you'd ever seen Harper steal from in one sitting. "It's not like I'm going to KILL them." Harper giggled. It's true. They wouldn't die. Just have to live the rest of all of their lives as 3-to-4-foot bone-thin weaklings. Harper seemed to think that was pretty agreeable. As the players got onto the field, it became clear why Harper hadn't siphoned everyone yet. She was waiting for EVERYONE to be in the vicinity. Parents, players, audience members and even the ref! "It's time!" She chirped. As a bright glow began to emanate around her. "Time to be a GODDESS!"

"Don't tell me you're getting cold feet now!" Harper led you to the seats you two had been assigned in the stands. You knew that you couldn't control her, but this was getting out of hand. Harper was always intimidating to you, with her bold and confident demeanor. She had a way of making you feel small and insignificant.

Despite her intimidating presence, there was no denying that Harper was beautiful. Her long, flowing hair and piercing blue eyes drew the attention of everyone around her. Her lithe figure and model-like features only added to her striking appearance.

Harper had the ability to steal anyone's size anytime she wanted. Of course, you, as a normal human, wanted Harper to stay normal sized for the majority of the time. Once a month, whenever she wanted, she was entitled to stealing the size of one group of people temporarily. It was still a lot, but manageable.

Now, as she looked at the crowd of people, she eyed them like meals. This was WAY more people than you'd ever seen Harper steal from in one sitting. "It's not like I'm going to KILL them." Harper giggled, her voice light and carefree. It's true. They wouldn't die. Just have to live the rest of all of their lives as 3-to-4-foot bone-thin weaklings. Harper seemed to think that was pretty agreeable.

As the players got onto the field, it became clear why Harper hadn't siphoned everyone yet. She was waiting for EVERYONE to be in the vicinity. Parents, players, audience members, and even the ref! You felt a knot form in your stomach, knowing that things were about to go horribly wrong.

If you have’t gotten your hands on the new Tamagotchi Pix, then you might be wondering what the attribute quiz is. Unlike previous modern Tamagotchi’s, the Tamagotchi Pix features a unique initial setup that will capture some information about you, it’s caretaker. The attribute quiz will display on your screen after an initial boot, or a reset with no downloading of previous data. Upon initial boot you’ll first set the time, enter your name and birthday, take a photo of yourself, and then the attribute quiz will appear!

The first question in the attribute quiz is your favorite food. The options are not labeled, so you are only selecting from small images, and four options are always displayed for you to choose between. Then you’ll be asked your favorite tool,  and lastly favorite color. Once you make all your selections in the attribute quiz you’ll then see all three eggs appear on your screen.

Last-last time, I answered my first two questions about Ares (Why had Xena never seen him before the sixth episode of the first season? And, if he was Xena’s mentor all throughout her warlord days, why is that he never shows up or is even mentioned in any of the flashback episodes to that time?).

Today, I will take on the three middle questions from my original post. As a refresher, they were: 3) How did losing his sword in “Ten Little Warlords” cost Ares his godhood when none of the other Olympian gods had this problem? 4) Why, if peaceful people became pugnacious without a sitting god of war during that episode, did the same thing not happen during the entire year and a half plus between “Motherhood” and “You Are There”? 6) How did Ares perform the body-swap on Callisto and Xena in “Intimate Stranger” if his powers don’t work in the underworld, as he claimed in “God Fearing Child”?

*gif below*

The answers to these questions are all linked. As noted previously, Hades was not pleased to learn about the unsanctioned body-swap performed in his realm. It is strongly implied in “Ten Little Warriors” that he confiscated his nephew’s/brother’s (LOL) sword and gave it to the dead King Sisyphus in retaliation against the god of war. Hades seemingly also put Ares’s godhood up for grabs, supposedly promising King Sisyphus immortality if he could find a suitable replacement and/or that Sisyphus himself could become the god of war. This part is less clear because the tricky king tells two different stories about what happened. But, even if Sisyphus was lying or wrong on either or both accounts,* and Ares’s godhood was irrevocably linked to his sword, then there is still a workable solution. The reason the other gods didn’t lose their godhood when their possessions got stolen would be two-fold.

First, the items taken over various XWP episodes— Hephaestus’s metal and chains, Hermes’s and Hades’s respective helmets, and Apollo’s urn— weren’t those gods’ primary symbols, not major parts of their identities and so, not endowed with their godhood. I checked around to be sure, but their symbols / sacred objects are as follows: Ares, sword; Hephaestus, hammer or anvil; Hermes, caduceus (the medical-symbol staff) or talaria (winged sandals); Hades, cornucopia; and Apollo, chariot or kithara (a type of lyre). Of course, the XenaVerse Celesta didn’t exist in Greek mythology, but her story parallels Ares’s nevertheless. What happened to him happened to her, with a slight difference. Her sacred object, her candle, got put into jeopardy twice, but since she is death personified, the loss of her symbol and godhood meant the loss of her altogether. This somewhat relates to the fact that…

Second, Ares (and later, Aphrodite) suffered identity theft as well. The world became more war-like in “Ten Little Warlords” and less loving in “You Are There” because other characters wrongfully tried to take the true deities’ places. As Ares says multiple times over the years, natural godhood is meant for beings born into that destiny (i.e. not Callisto, etc.) Hades and King Sisyphus stole Ares’s godhood with the intention of replacing him, as Caligula did to Aphrodite. So, the world got thrown into chaos. However, it did not lose terror, wisdom, hunting, the underworld, etc. after Xena killed the gods connected to those things because she had no intention of seating herself on their thrones, and gave no one else that opportunity either. The same goes for why war remained in the world and nobody got seized by battle-lust without a sitting god of war after Ares willingly gave up his godhood in “Motherhood;” no one else tried or was able to take up his mantle.

With the fifth question, we return to Ares’s punishment for the Callisto-Xena body-swap. Ares was able to win back his sword and godhood with Xena’s help at the end of “Ten Little Warlords.” Thus, his punishment got nullified. So, I think for pride and safety’s sake, Hades (with or without Zeus and the rest of the family, whom Ares found himself on the “outs with” more than once, as he later asserted in “The Furies”) made it so that Ares’s powers would never work in the underworld again.

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